Radio station manager gunned down in Logar province

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is saddened to learn that Mohammad Nassir Madser, the manager of a local radio station, was gunned down today near his home in Mohammad Agha District, located about 65 km south of Kabul in Logar province.

“We offer our condolences to this journalist’s family and colleagues and we urge the Afghan government to conduct a proper investigation without delay in order to identify the perpetrators and instigators of this murder,” said Réza Moïni, the head of RSF’s Iran-Afghanistan desk.

Aged 53 and the father of four children, Madser was the manager of Paigham Meli Logar, a local radio station that has been broadcasting more than 12 hours of programming a day since 2003.

His son, Mohammad Zobire, who also works for the radio station, told RSF: “He left the radio station and, at around 4:30 pm, when he was half-way home, he was shot by unidentified individuals on a motorcycle.”

Zobire added: “Our work is neutral and professional. We had not been threatened and I don’t understand why he was killed. It is now night-time here and neither the police nor the security forces have come to carry out an investigation.”

Hojatullah Mujadadi, a representative of the Afghan Independent Journalists Association, said: “He had told us about threats against him and the radio station and he had also reported the threats to the governor and the security forces.”

Salim Lhan Saleh, the spokesman for Logar’s governor, told journalists that Madser was killed by the Taliban. The Taliban have not as yet claimed the murder.